Tainted Light
by i luv niki4444
Summary: The most dangerous monster in the game, the... trump card if you will. What if this beast was actually another player?
1. Mission

**_Tainted Light_**

_i luv niki4444_

**Chapter 1: Mission**

* * *

Summary: The most dangerous monster in the game, the... _trump card _if you will. What if this beast was actually another player?

* * *

**Darkness. **

All around it was black, not a speck of light able to get through the door pressed tight on its hinges.

**Pain. **

**Hurt.**

A throbbing was felt in her chest, worse than the pain from the never-ending whip that lashed her back. Keeping her life force close to zero.

**Betrayal.**

**Fear. **

**Loathing.**

How could anyone turn traitor on someone so close to them? How _could_ he!

**Rage.**

**Hatred.**

**Anger.**

_**Suffering**_**.**

_'Father, what have you done to me?' _

Who would ever wish this upon their own child, who would do something so utterly terrible to their own blood?

A deep voice chuckled, and the man she had been thinking of appeared before her, smiling that psychotic smile.

_'He's mad, but he's a genius.' _She thought, making sure not to let her guard down despite how easily he could kill her.

_**" .Me. Lovely to see you dear! How are you feeling, your health is looking a bit low." **_He had the nerve to sound genuinely concerned for her well-being.

"Why are you here?" She spit out, flinching when the whip hit her much harder than normal. She was supposed to play nice, he controlled this world after all.

_**"Hmmm. You've become so hostile, I thought I'd raised you better than that." **_He paused, basking in her suffering. _**"But it's no matter. I've got an assignment for you." **_

The whips ceased their cruelty and almost immediately her health bar was back up to full. "What is it you wish of me, _Father_?"

He gave her an amused look._**"As you know, today was the official release of this game, though you have been here since the start of beta testing. During the beta version I saw a very... intriguing character." **_

Kagome waited in silence, unsure of what he intended to ask of her.

_**"Kirito. That is his name. I want you to befriend him, become close to him. Perhaps one day... you could marry him."**_

Kagome clenched a fist and shouted. "Why would I do that?"

Her father laughed, grinning madly. _**"I can tell already... he will become the greatest player in this game. Tragedy in games is what makes them interesting. And what could be more tragic than the hero's best friend or beautiful bride turning out to be the very same beast he will have to kill on the 100th floor." **_

Kagome glared at him defiantly, "And if I say no? What incentive do I have to hurt this boy so deeply?!"

Her father merely smiled the same smile he would when explaining things to her as a child. _**"Ahhhh, Kagome. Do you not wish to be released from this cell? Choose now, do you wish for the freedom of the outside world? Or perhaps you would like to stay here, remaining in your bonds, to be tortured until those bakas finally manage to get to Level 100. We both know the odds of that happening before 10 years is up are very slim." **_

Kagome bit her lip, glancing at the place she _knew _the door was.

_**"Wouldn't you rather spend those 10 years happily, with people you've grown to care for?" **_

"I'll have to kill those people later." Kagome whispered back, but gave the door another lingering glance. "But I... I-I'll do it!"

Kayaba Akihiko stared down at his daughter, _**"I'll lower your ability to heal quickly, you'll have to reearn that. However, I'm leaving the rest of your stats as they are, you'll have to take care to soften your blows considerably and hide your Level from all eyes." **_His lips twitched. _**"Will you be able to appear weak Kagome?" **_

"Yes."

* * *

_**In 2022, humanity has finally...**_

_**...created a complete virtual environment.**_

* * *

"It's time for this week's MMO Stream!" A woman on the TV exclaimed. "We began with a promotional video. Was this the day of last week's launch?" They showed lines and lines of people on the screen. "What were all these people waiting in line for? Sword Art Online! The one at the front of the line waited for three days prior to launch! AMAZING! Or is this just what any real gamer would do?"

Kirito listened to this with half an ear, paying much more attention to his magazine.

"On today's MMO Stream, we'll be covering the internationally famous Sword Art Online, AKA SAO!"

At this moment Kirito flipped a page to fast and he examined his now bleeding finger. _'Not another paper cut.' _

"To be honest, none of the NerveGear Software Released so far has really taken advantage of the hardware. Yeah, it's all sucked."

"BROTHER..." A voice called, knocking quietly on his door.

Kirito turned as if to see if his younger sister would dare open it.

"I'm off to practice."

Kirito waited for her footsteps to retreat before shutting his TV off and closing his magazine. He grabbed his own NerveGear helmet and put it on, lying down on the bed and smirked as it activated.

"Link Start!"

It brought him through the basic settings and logins before his world became a gray screen that said 'Welcome to Sword Art Online!' then flashed him through cyberspace.

Finally the images cleared out and he found himself in the middle of a town square. "I'm back in this world!"

His appearance was now that of a handsome protagonist from some fantasy animation, making him look older than he actually was.

He had set his height to the same as his height in the real world -almost 5'7"!- and he wore a hand-sewn pale blue short sleeved shirt with a V-shaped cut on the chest which was tied with a light brown cord along with trousers and hand-sewn leather shoes.

* * *

Kirito run through the town dodging people as he went.

This caught the attention of two people who were just a bit more curious than others. One of them was a man with pink hair, brown eyes, and a bit of stubble on his chin, the other a girl with long black hair and blue eyes.

"HEY! YOU THERE!" The man yelled chasing after him, the girl followed his lead and they quickly caught up to Kirito -who had stopped to see what they wanted.

"Me?" Kirito murmured curiously.

"You move like you've been here before. You were in the beta test, right?" The pink haired guy said after catching his breath.

"Y-Yeah."

"Today's my first day. Show me the basics okay?"

"Uh..."

"I'm begging you! My name's Klein, nice to meet you!"

Kirito smiled, nodding his head to him. "I'm Kirito."

"Um..." The girl from before murmured, catching the attention of both of them. "G-Gomen-nasi!"

"Was there something you wanted?" Kirito asked politely, noticing that she was extremely cute, but also aware there was a possibility that she wasn't even FEMALE in real life.

The girl blushed prettily, "Uh.. No? G-Gomen! I'm gonna..." She turned around, only to have her hand caught by Klein.

"Non-sense! There must be something or you wouldn't have came over here." He inspected her with a friendly smile and the girl blushed further but gave a small smile of her own.

"Well..."

"Go on!" He encouraged and Kirito felt a little sorry for her, even HE wasn't this socially awkward.

She bit her lip, looking up at them both shyly through her lashes. "I was going to ask the same thing Klein-san did, b-but he beat me to it... A-and I'm sure you've got much better things to be doing!" She shifted on her feet and finally looked at Klein with a look of horror and panick clear on her face. "Ahhh! Gomen, Gomen! I'm not stalking you or anything, I just heard your name because I was standing behind you!"

Klein laughed boisterously. "Ahhhh, isn't she kawaii Kirito?!"

"Y-Yeah I guess." Kirito muttered, turning his face away but caught the girl's blush heading down her neckline as she began to promptly refuse to being 'kawaii'.

"Come on Kirito! You can spare a little time for this kawaii little girl can't you?!" Klein said, letting his arm hang loosely around her shoulders.

"I-I!" She squeaked.

Kirito smiled slightly, "Yeah. What's your name?"

She stopped struggling and complaining to look over at him and for a moment he could have sworn he saw something... not so innocent in her large blue eyes.

"M-my name? Kagome."

* * *

"RIGHT IN THE CROTCH!" Klein crowed, holding said part of his body.

Kagome blushed, hiding behind a sweat dropping Kirito. "I-Is he always like that?"

Kirito shrugged, "We met him at the same time. Had you forgotten?"

Kagome nodded with a deeper blush and Kirito wanted to sigh, _'This isn't the type of girl you'd usually find in a gaming world. She's got to be around 10 in the real world.' _

"Give me a break. You don't feel any pain, right?"

Klein stopped his yelling and seemed to think for a moment. "Oh, yeah. Just habit I guess!" He scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

"Alright." Kirito turned around and gently pried off the fingers that seemed to be welded to the back of his shirt. "You're turn Kagome-san."

She let out a squeak. "M-me?!" She pointed to herself as if to emphasise the question.

Kirito nodded, his face taking on a stern look. "You did say you wanted to learn."

Kagome glanced back and forth between him and the boar uncertainly. "I..." She glanced away, looking even more embarrassed. "Sure."

She took a few steps forward, facing the boar down and timidly drew her blade.

The boar's beady red eyes seemed to glare at her and Kagome felt her blood begin to boil.

It was challenging her.

The boar roared and charged at her and Kagome's eyes flashed with fire. Today was not that beast's day.

Her sword lit up with her skill and she went head on right at it, slashing its body -which quickly turned to red shards and vanished.

Glaring at the spot it once stood a card came up showing how much EXP she'd earned.

"That was... hot." Klein finally said, a grin appearing on his face.

Kirito's brow furrowed. "Kagome-san, you already know how to use skills?"

Immediately she blushed, "Well..."

Klein grinned, "I sense something interesting coming into play."

Kagome tucked her head down and waited for the storm to come. "I was a beta too."

Kirito stared at her incredulously, "Then why did you ask for help?!"

Kagome made sure to blush _extra _madly. "I-I... I thought you were cool... I remembered seeing you in the beta meeting!" She started trembling and she finally made looked at him with tears gathering in her eyes. "But I'm too s-shy to ask you to be in a party with me... so I-I..." She trailed off.

There was a brief silence before Klein started laughing. "You really are as cute as a button Kagome-san!"

Kirito fumbled for words, honestly not knowing how to react to this kind of situation. "H-Hey don't cry Kagome-san it's alright."

She looked at him with tear tracks running down her face. "B-But I lied to you!"

He laughed awkwardly, reaching over to lay a hand on her shoulder. "Come on everyone tells a little lie every once in a while. I don't mind Kagome-san, but..." He paused looking her full in the face. "You could have just told me you wanted to be in a party."

"But she's too shy Kirito!" Klein crowed from behind him and Kirito gave him a half-hearted glare.

"Come on, I still have to show you how to do this!"

* * *

"DANG IT!" Klein landed on the ground, hard.

Kirito sighed, "I've told you. What's important is your initial motion input." He turned his attention to the boar that had just knocked Klein on his arse and picked up a rock.

Klein sulked, getting up. "Sure, I get that... But he keeps moving around!"

"If you do the motion input right, and activate a sword skill, the system will ensure that the technique connects." With that he took aim and threw the rock, hitting the boar in his back left thigh.

Lessons continued as such -with Kagome sometimes putting in a few words of correction or help- until Klein FINALLY got the hang of it and killed the low-level boar.

"Congrats!" Kirito said, a small smile on his face.

Kagome nodded at him grinning and Klein felt pride fill his chest.

He'd made his first kill!

* * *

"I still can't believe it, no matter how many times I see it..." Klein turned to smile at his two companions. "That we're in a game. Whoever made it is a genius. It's really amazing. Seriously, I'm glad I was born in this time."

Kagome turned her face away from the sunset, scoffing slightly. "You make a big deal out of everything."

Klein smiled again, gasping in mock offense. "It's my first full dive!"

"Then this is your first time playing a game with NerveGear?" Kirito asked.

Klein nodded earnestly. "I rushed out and bought the hardware to play SAO. I was really lucky to get one of the ten thousand copies. Well, you both were ten times as lucky, getting into the beta test, only a thousand people got to do it."

**"I guess." **Kagome and Kirito muttered at the same time.

"How far did you get in the beta?"

"Over a couple of months, only to Level 8. This time, it'll only take a month." Kirito responded and Kagome nodded from beside him.

Klein smiled at them both. "You're really into this."

"To be honest, during the beta test, SAO was all I thought about, day and night. In this world, a single blade can take you anywhere you want to go. It's a virtual world, but I still feel more alive here than I do in the real one." Kirito laughed slightly, "Now then, want to hunt some more?"

Both Kagome and Klein nodded.

"I'd love to, but I'm really hungry. So I'm logging out." Klein said, just as his stomach growled.

"Eating food here only makes you think you're not hungry." Kagome said with a nod in his direction.

Klein laughed triumphantly. "I already ordered a hot pizza for 5:30!"

Kirito smiled, "You're so prepared."

"OH YEAH!" Klein grinned, "Well, once I've eaten, I'll be back!"

"I see."

"Hey!" Klein got up and gripped two arms each belonging to one of his newest friends. "After this, I'm meeting up with some people I know from another game. You guys want to friend them too?"

Both Kagome and Kirito froze, looking at the ground.

"Of course, if you don't want to that's okay. I'll introduce you both another time."

**"Yeah, Gomen." **They muttered together, both honestly looking sorry. **"Thanks." **

Klein rolled his eyes. "Hey that's my line! I'll pay you two back for your help... Mentally."

Kirito nodded.

"Thanks so much!" He held out his hand and Kagome shook it gingerly. "See you around."

Kirito took the hand after her. "If there's anything else you want to know, just tell me."

"Yeah! I'll do that!"

Klein waved, a large grin on his face, before turning around and checking his menu.

Kirito waved a hand for Kagome to follow him and she did so like a lost puppy.

"Huh? There's no button to log out." Klein suddenly exclaimed.

"Look closer." Kagome said back.

"No, it's not there."

"At the bottom of the main menu..." Kirito murmured, opening his own and gasping.

"See it's not there."

"No, it isn't."

Kagome frowned opening her own and getting the familiar sight of the missing log out button.

"Well, it's the first day out of beta!" Klein said cheerfully, "There are bound to be some bugs. I'm sure the server people are freaking out!"

Kagome smiled, "In a second you will be too!"

"It's 5:25." Kirito finished for her.

Klein gasped clutching his head. "MY TERIYAKI MAYO PIZZA AND GINGER ALE!"

Kirito rolled his eyes. "Just hurry and call the game master."

"I tried, but nothing's happening." Klein complained. "Is there any other way to log out?"

"No. If a player wants to log themselves out, they have to go through the menu." Kagome murmured, her fist clenching.

"That's nuts! There's gotta be some way!" Klein exclaimed. "RETURN! LOG OUT! ESCAPE!"

The sky began to turn eerily dark and Kagome instinctively huddled closer to Kirito, who put an arm around her protectively. "She's telling the truth. There wasn't an emergency logout in the manual either."

"You're kidding right?" Klein said his eyes wide. "I know! I'll just rip the NerveGear off my head..."

"You can't." Kirito said, "We can't move our real bodies. The NerveGear intercepts anything we tell our bodies to do here."

"Seriously?" Klein looked worriedly at him. "...So we have to wait for them to fix the bug?"

"Or for someone in the real world to remove the NerveGear from us." Kagome murmured.

"But I live alone." Klein said, his brow furrowing. "What about you two?"

"I have a mom and sister. So, I think they'll notice by dinnertime..."

Kagome turned away, her eyes on the ground.

"Eh? Kagome-san what about you?"

"I'm... alone."

Both Klein and Kirito frowned, remembering how they'd thought she couldn't be more than 10 years old. The former of the two decided make a joke to lighten the mood.

He jumped forward and gripped Kirito by the shoulders, "H-How old's your little sister?"

"...She's on a sports team and she hates games. She has nothing to do with people like us."

Kagome forced to let go of Kirito if only to not be squashed. "That doesn't matter-"

Of course it mattered a second later when Kirito kicked him in the bad place. "AHHH- Oh right it doesn't hurt."

Kirito scoffed. "More importantly, don't you find this weird?"

Klein shrugged, "Sure I do. It's a bug."

Kagome shook her head. "This isn't just a bug."

Kirito nodded along with her. "If we can't log out, that'll pose a serious problem for the game's future."

"Come to think of it you're right." Klein muttered.

"If they wanted to, they could just shut down the server and log everyone out. But there isn't even an announcement."

"Something just isn't right." Kagome murmured, tears gathering in her eyes again.

Klein started waving his hands at her frantically. "Ahh! Kagome-san don't cry!"

**BOOM**

**BOOM**

**BOOM**

**BOOM**

The bell in the church went off, resonating throughout the entire area.

There was a bright light for all the players, who then found themselves in the middle of the town square once more.

"A forced teleport?" Kirito muttered, looking around wildly and grabbing the arm of a very distressed Kagome. "Shhh, it'll be alright, Kagome-san."

"What happened? Where are we?" Klein shouted.

The bell finally stopped tolling as the last of 10,000 players were transported into the square.

"Up there." Kagome murmured shivering.

**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _**Warning! **_System Announcement! _

The same words dotted themselves above their heads in red, creating a dome shape around the square, a map of the world could just be made out in lighter pink behind the words.

Next blood ran through the edges of some of these warning signs and created the shape of a cloaked figure.

Klein gaped. "What is that?"

"A game master?" Kirito muttered.

_**"Attention, players. Welcome to my world."**_

"My world?" Kirito murmured, glancing at Klein and Kagome from the corner of his eye to see their reaction. Both were gaping at the figure.

_**"My name is Kayaba Akihiko. As of this moment, I am the sole person who can control this world." **_

He let them absorb this before continuing. _**"I'm sure by now you're all aware, that the logout button is missing from the main menu. But it is not a defect in the game. I repeat, this is not a defect in the game. It is a feature of Sword Art Online."**_

"A-A feature?" Klein muttered.

_**"You cannot log out of SAO yourselves. And no one on the outside can shut down or remove the NerveGear. Should this be attempted, the transmitter inside the NerveGear will emit a powerful microwave, destroying your brain and thus ending your life."**_

A few people tried to leave the square, but found an invisible barrier blocking their way.

"What's he talking about? He's gotta be nuts! Right, Kirito? Kagome?"

"He's right that the transmitter's signals work just like microwaves. If the safety were disabled it could fry a brain."

"Then if we cut the power..."

"No, the NerveGear has an internal battery."

Kagome bit her lip, nodding in agreement with Kirito. "This is terrible."

_**"Unfortunately, several players' friends and families have ignored this warning and have attempted to remove the NerveGear. As a result, two hundred and thirteen players are gone forever. From both Aincrad and the real world." **_

"Two hundred and thirteen?!" Kirito stuttered.

"I don't believe it..." Klein murmured.

Kagome clutched Kirito's arm tighter but couldn't bear to take her eyes of her father's form. "Two hundred and thirteen... that's _several_?!"

_**"As you can see, news organizations across the world are reporting all of this, including the deaths. Thus, you can assume that the danger of a NerveGear being removed is now minimal. I hope you can relax and attempt to clear the game. But I want you to remember this clearly! There is no longer any method to revive someone within the game! If your HP drops to zero, your avatar will be forever lost. And simultaneously, the NerveGear will destroy your brain." **_

Kirito gasped, thinking of how many times he'd been killed in the beta version. Turning, he looked into the terrified faces of Klein and Kagome. Could he stand for those two to die?

_'I have to protect them!' _

_**"There is only one means of escape. To complete the game. You are presently on the lowest floor of Aincrad. Floor 1. If you make your way through the dungeon and defeat the Floor Boss, you may advance to the next level. Defeat the final boss on Floor 100, and you will clear the game." **_

"Clear all hundred floors? That's impossible! The beta testers never made it anywhere near that high!" Kleine yelled.

_**"Finally, I've added a present from me to your item storage. Please see for yourselves." **_

Everyone checked their items in the menu. "Mirror?" Kirito muttered pressing the button.

A mirror appeared in his hand, as well as the hands of the rest of the curious players. One by one a blue light encased them and finally the lights broke up to reveal... people who didn't really look like they had originally.

"Hey are you two okay?!" Klein called, walking closer to his two friends.

"Y-Yeah..." Kirito muttered, turning around to see Klein only to be faced with... someone completely different. "Who are you?"

"And who are you?" Klein asked.

Looking back down at the mirror, Kirito found that his features had become softer, younger and he looked like he did outside the game. Exactly like he did in real life.

"Which means... You're Klein?!"

"You're Kirito?!"

They said at the same time.

Klein now had much shorter hair -though it was still pink- and he had even more stubble.

"...What about Kagome?!" Klein said, turning to see she'd collapsed onto the ground, silky black hair covering her face.

"Kagome, are you alright?" Kirito asked gently and she looked up at him through watery eyes.

"... My head hurts really bad! This is all so confusing!"

Two jaws dropped. Kagome herself looked almost exactly as she had before the mirror, though instead of looking like she was seventeen, she was obviously only around 14 and she face was a little sharper than it had been. It gave her a sort of elegance that hadn't been present before the mirror.

They were just shocked because they were both sure she couldn't have been older than 11 before and here it turned out she was 14!

"How!?" Klein murmured, unsure of how they had been turned to look like they did offline.

"That scan... The NerveGear covers your entire head with a high-density signaling device. So it can see what your face looks like... but our height and body shape..."

"When we first used the NerveGear it had us calibrate it right? You had to touch your body all over."

"O-Oh, right... That must be where it got the data."

"But...But... Why?! Why do all this, anyway?"

Kirito pointed, "I'm sure he'll tell us."

_**"Right now, you're probably wondering. "Why?" Why would Kayaba Akihiko, developer of Sword Art Online and NerveGear, do all this? My goal has already been achieved. I created Sword Art Online for one reason... to create this world and intervene in it." **_

"Kayaba!..." Kirito hissed, glaring at the figure.

_**"And now, it is complete. This ends the tutorial for the official Sword Art Online launch. Good luck, players."**_

With that both he and the dome disappeared.

Kirito's hand shook as he closed his fist tightly. _'This is real. The genius who created NerveGear and created a completely virtual space, Kayaba Akihiko. I admired him, so I can tell... Everything he just said is true. If I die in the game, I will die in real life!' _

"Come on Klein!" Kirito hissed, grabbing the back of his shirt.

They ran through the streets to a completely secluded area and only then did Kirito stop.

"Listen to me Klein..."

"BUT KIRITO!" Klein cried anxiously, and Kirito cocked his head to the side. "K-Kagome?! We left Kagome back there!"

Kirito's eyes widened and he looked behind himself. "I'm... such an idiot. I thought she was behind us. I assumed she'd follow..."

"We need to go back!" Klein yelled, turning around.

"No." Kirito snapped. "Kagome will be fine!"

Klein turned back to him, looking to be in pain. "She's our friend."

Kirito's fist tightened, "I know. I know it's bad to leave her by herself but she was a beta...she'll be okay." He took a deep breath. "I'm heading to the next village right now. Come with me."

Kirito summoned his menu. "If what he said is true, the only way to survive in this world is by making yourself as strong as possible. The resources within a virtual MMORPG... in other words the money and EXP we can earn are limited. The fields surrounding the Town of Beginnings will soon be hunted clean. To do this efficiently, we need to head to the next village now.

"I know all the paths and dangerous areas. Even at level 1, I can get there safely."

"But... But you know..." Klein murmured, "I spent a while night in line to buy this game with my friends from the other game. They're out there, in the plaza... with Kagome. I can't leave them and I can't leave her."

Kirito looked at the ground. _'If it were just Klein... but two more... or even one more. Kagome's a beta, she'll be fine. But if I were to try to bring that many people to the next town safely...'_

"Sorry. I can hardly ask you for anything else, can I? So don't worry about it. Go to the next village. I used to run a guild in my last game! I can use what you taught me to get by! And we both know that Kagome knows about as much of this game as you do!" Klein offereed with a grin.

"All right... Then let's say goodbye here. If something happens, send me a message."

"Will do!"

"Okay, goodbye, Klein. And if you see Kagome, tell her I said the same... tell her to stay alive?Alright?"

"Kirito!"

He stopped, but when Klein didn't finish he continued to walk once more.

"Hey, Kirito! You were actually pretty cute. That's my type."

Kirito smiled turning around, "And that unkempt face of yours suits you ten times better!"

Klein grinned, "And Kagome looked even more adorable when she looked in the mirror!"

Kirito laughed slightly. "Hai! But if you keep calling her that, she might seriously hurt you!"

With that he turned and began turning down the alleyway, turning to see Klein one last time...

...but he was already gone.

_'I-I'm... I'm going to survive! In this world!' _

* * *

**_i luv niki4444_**

I love Kirito! He's so bad ass! o_O ...But it's also hard to write him because of his lack of expressions! (Or at least in the first episode) XD Bare with me guys!

Hope you like it!

_**Love Always**_

_**~Niki **_


	2. December 1st

_To survive in a world_

_Created to be unbeatable_

_They must fight the beast._

_**Tainted Light**_

_i luv niki4444_

**Chapter 2: December 1st**

* * *

The sky was a soft grey in the early hours of the morning.

Dew twinkled brightly on the grass; green grass that the morning sun sent into a kaleidoscope of colors. Sparkling, twisting, creating anew.

_'A perfect day.'_ Kagome thought.

She knew exactly how everything would happen.

At 7a.m. the warmth of the sun would cause the dew to evaporate.

8:30a.m the sun would begin to come on strong, it would wake up everyone, even those who did not wish to wake. The one's who threw a pillow over their heads and muttered "5 more minutes".

Throughout the day it would not surpass 91 degrees and a gentle breeze would cool down anyone foolish enough to stay outside for extended periods of time.

At 8p.m. the sun would finally begin its decent and the moon makes its appearance. Yet on this night the air would remain at 78 degrees and humid.

Kagome scoffed; how did she remember this day in particular so well?

She had created it, that was why.

Today was _that _day, the one that happened once a year, always the same day...

* * *

_"Daddy! Why are you always working?!" A little girl said, jumping into the lap of her extremely busy father. _

_Kayaba Akihiko patted her back and ruffled her black hair. "Ahhh, Kagome. You're 7th birthday is tomorrow isn't it?" _

_Kagome nodded excitedly, grabbing onto his lab coat with pudgy hands and looking at him brightly. "Yeahhhh! What did you get me?! What is it!?" _

_He turned her around to face his computer; symbols, numbers, and letters were gathered in some kind of secret language that only the two of them could read and it warmed her heart. _'I'm the only one besides daddy who can read these, only me and daddy.'

_It was the only thing they did together, he'd taught her the language and she'd given him her input. "I don't have a store boughten gift for you this year Kagome. This year... I'm going to let you design a piece of my game." _

_Her blue eyes reached saucer like proportions and she let out a series of well placed oohhhhhhs and aahhhhhhhhhhs. "Really?!" _

_He nodded focusing back on his computer screen. "You're going to design the weather of your birthday. Your ideal, perfect day. Does that sound like a good present?" _

_Kagome blinked back tears of joy and hugged him tightly. "The best present, EVER!" Sniffling, she pulled away and looked him straight in the eye. "Promise me that I'll get to see it one day?"_

_Kayaba Akihiko smiled at her gently, "I'll one up you. I promise that one day, you will _live _it Kagome." _

* * *

"December 1st. You have no idea how much I hate you." Kagome muttered, watching as the time rolled by and her predictions came true.

* * *

_Kagome tucked her head down and waited for the storm to come. "I was a beta too."_

_Kirito stared at her incredulously, "Then why did you ask for help?!"_

_Kagome made sure to blush __**extra**__ madly. "I-I... I thought you were cool... I remembered seeing you in the beta meeting!" She started trembling and she finally made looked at him with tears gathering in her eyes. "But I'm too s-shy to ask you to be in a party with me... so I-I..." She trailed off._

_There was a brief silence before Klein started laughing. "You really are as cute as a button Kagome-san!"_

_Kirito fumbled for words, honestly not knowing how to react to this kind of situation. "H-Hey don't cry Kagome-san it's alright."_

_She looked at him with tear tracks running down her face. "B-But I lied to you!"_

_He laughed awkwardly, reaching over to lay a hand on her shoulder. "Come on everyone tells a little lie every once in a while. I don't mind Kagome-san, but..." He paused looking her full in the face. "You could have just told me you wanted to be in a party."_

_"But she's too shy Kirito!" Klein crowed from behind him and Kirito gave him a half-hearted glare._

_"Come on, I still have to show you how to do this!"_

It had been a month since that day, since he'd abandoned those two. Two thousand players had died; was she gone as well?

Kirito's brow furrowed slightly. He didn't like the idea.

Klein was also at risk; of course he was also with a few people, maybe they'd managed to get by.

_She was alone._

His pants made a slight swisshhhhing sound as he took slow steps forward, pacing himself with the rest of the crowd, before he managed to step to the side down a less populated alley to continue his journey.

The worst part of the whole thing, was that even with 2,000 dead players; even knowing that Kagome and Klein could be dead, their smiles never to be seen by his eyes again...

The worst was that they were still only on the first level. One of One Hundred.

And a fifth of their population was already gone.

It all just seemed so hopeless.

Even the beta testers didn't know where the boss room was located!

But today they were going to turn it around. A bunch of people were getting together to figure out how to do something about it! Kirito expertly navigated his way through the remaining alleyways and finally found the old coliseum that was to be the meeting place.

Kirito looked around the place and found there were quite a few people there, though it was not nearly as full as he would have expected it to be.

"Okay! Let's get started people!" Called a man with slightly long blue hair. "Thank you for coming today. My name is Diabel! I like to consider my "job" as Knight."

Most people laughed at his remark.

"There's no job system in this game!"

"You should take this seriously!"

"Then, is the meeting a joke, too?"

A hard edge entered Diabel's eye and he looked at them all, "Today, our party found the boss room at the top of the tower."

"Seriously?!"

"We need to defeat the boss, reach the second floor and tell everyone waiting in the Town of Beginnings that it is possible to beat this game! Everyone present here shares this duty." He looked around at them again. "Do you all agree?"

The crowd in front of him looked around at each other and gradually started clapping and nodding.

Kirito smiled slightly, maybe there was hope for the them after all.

"All right! Then let us begin our planning! First, divide into parties of six. An ordinary party has no chance against a floor boss. We'll need to form a raid group using multiple parties."

Kirito blanched looking around to see everyone had already partied.

Warning bells rang off and he glanced up a bit further and saw that there was a cloaked person without a party sitting in the same row as him, just a little ways away. As well as another sitting just a little above them.

Kirito slid down to the first figure. "Hey you got left out too?"

"I wasn't left out. I just stayed out because everyone seemed to know each other already." The girl under the cloak murmured.

"A solo player? Then, want to form a party with me?"

The girl looked at him with a slightly furrowed eyebrow.

Kirito gulped, "He just said we can't beat the boss on our own, that's why I thought we should party up along with that other girl sitting up there. Just for this fight?"

The girl nodded and Kirito sent out a party invitation, which she accepted.

_'Asuna.'_

Kirito turned around and quietly made his way up to the other girl. "Hey..."

"Party?" The girl asked, already knowing what he was about to say.

A small blush coated his cheeks and he nodded. "Ah, yeah." She accepted his invitation and he was slightly curious when the girl ducked in her head a little.

He frowned slightly when he saw that the health bar showed but her name didn't appear. "Um..."

"It's a special skill." She murmured and got up quietly to sit next to Asuna. Kirto shrugged slightly and hopped down to sit next to the mystery girl.

"Okay, have you formed your parties?" Diabel asked. "Then-"

"JUST A SECOND!" Someone called out Turning they saw someone standing at the top of the stairs, he hopped down in just three steps and landed in the middle of the platform. The man was slightly shorter, bulky, and had spiky brown hair. "My name's Kibaou."

He looked at them all and crossed his arms. "I wanna say something before we take on the boss."

"Eh?" The girl next to Kirito murmured and he had to agree, what could it possibly be?

"Some of you here need to apologize to the two thousand who have died so far!"

Diabel frowned. "Kibaou, are you referring to the beta testers?"

Kibaou turned to him and said, "Of course I am! On the day this stupid game started the beta guys ditched us beginners, they all disappeared. They took all the good hunting spots and easy quests for themselves so only they could get stronger. And then, they just ignored the rest of us."

His eyes flashed and he turned to wave his fist at the crowd. "I'm sure someone here was in the beta! They should get on their knees and apologize and give up all the items and money they've hoarded. Otherwise we can't trust them to protect us as party members and they shouldn't trust us!"

Kirito closed his eyes nervously waiting to be called out. His eyes snapped open when he felt a smaller hand slide into his own.

He looked back over at the unknown girl, but she wasn't even looking at him.

_'A-Arigatou...' _

"May I speak?" A man of darker skin, great height and obvious strength stood up and walked to stand in front of Kibaou. "My name is Egil. Kibaou, tell me if I have this right.

"You're saying that because the beta testers didn't take care of them, many beginners died. That they should take responsibility, apologize, and provide compensation. Correct?"

A bead of sweat rolled down Kibaou's face as he tried to hide how intimidated he was. "Y-Yeah."

Egil smoothly took out a brown book. "You got this guide-book, didn't you? It was provided for free at the item store."

"Sure I did... Why?"

"It was compiled from information given by the beta testers."

Everyone in the place -who had previously been riled up by Kibaou's speech- gasped. "Seriously?"

Egil turned to look at them. "Listen. Everyone had equal access to this information. And even still, many players died. I thought the topic of discussion here was what we could learn from their deaths, and how that can help us defeat the Boss."

Kibaou glared at him, but was forced to relent the topic because of the other man's good logic. Both sat down in the front row and Diabel took center stage once more.

"Alright. Then, can we resume? The latest edition of the guide-book has been issued, and it contains information on the boss. According to it, the Boss's name is Illfang the Kobold Lord. He is guarded by assistants known as Ruin Kobold Sentinels. He is armed with an axe and a buckler. He has four health bars, and when the last one enters the red. He switches to a curved sword-type weapon called a Talwar. His attack pattern changes as well.

"This concludes the briefing. Lastly, items will be automatically distributed. EXP goes to the party that defeats the monster. And whoever receives an item keeps it. Any objections?"

No one objected.

"Okay, we leave tomorrow at ten in the morning. See you there!"

When the speech was over everyone gathered around Diabel. Everyone, that is, except Kirito's party.

Asuna took off and Kirito was quick to follow, their mysterious little friend trailed along her hand still clutched tightly in Kirito's.

* * *

"Hey, why are you so quiet?" Kirito asked, looking at the girl next to him. He still didn't know her name and that annoying cloak was keeping him from seeing her face. Still something about her was familiar.

He made a choking as he realized how he must have sounded. "Ahhh, Gomen! I didn't mean to be rude!"

She tipped her head to him slightly, "I guess, I just don't feel like talking much." There was silence before she spoke up again, "Asuna. She's the other member of our party."

Kirito nodded, "Yeah, what makes you say that." Asuna had split up from the two of them as quickly as possible. Kirito had half expected this mystery girl to do the same, but she'd remained.

She hadn't let go of his hand either.

It was like she needed an anchor to keep her there... or something.

_'She's so familiar. I know I've heard that voice before and yet I can't place it.' _Kirito frowned, maybe he knew her outside of the game somehow.

He noticed that the girl's cheeks got a little red under that shadowy cloak. "Ahhhh, I was just wondering. Do you know her?"

Kirito frowned his head cocking to the side. "No, you?"

"Nope!"

_'That voice, who is she?' _He was once again reminded of how dang _familiar _she was when she spoke a little more cheerfully.

"Speak of the devil!" Kirito muttered seeing the object of their conversation sitting by a fountain not far away.

"Can we sit down?"

Asuna looked up slightly and nodded, sliding further away when the two did as he'd asked.

From there Kirito gave them both cream from a quest he'd done called "The Heifer Strikes Back." and he offered to help them complete it.

Little Miss Mystery said she'd already done it and that she'd let him have some of her cream and Asuna replied that she didn't come here for good food.

"So why are you here, if not for good food?" Kirito asked.

Asuna hesitated for a minute. "So I can still be me. I'd rather stay myself until the very end than sit and rot away at an inn, back in the first town. Even if I get killed by a monster, I don't want to lose to this game... To this world. No matter what."

Kirito frowned, eating the rest of his bread. "I wouldn't want a party member dying on me... so at the least, don't die tomorrow. Either of you."

It was with those words that the nameless girl finally let go of his hand and stood up to leave.

Kirito watched her walk away and saw Diabel approach her just within hearing range. "Ahhh! Hey, Ka-chan! Why did you refuse my party invitation. I know you don't do well with people you don't know!"

"Gomen-nasi, Diabel-kun. I suppose I wasn't thinking straight. I just thought perhaps those two could use more help."

He laughed, "Don't worry about it Ka-chan! And you'll do fine tomorrow, even fighting with people you don't recognize."

Kirito's eyes widened and the surprise on Asuna's face showed she'd been listening as well.

_'She refused a party request with Diabel... because she knew Asuna and I would be the only ones left?' _

Just who was 'Ka-chan'?

* * *

"Let's do it over again. Our leftovers are supposed to target the Boss's helpers; the Ruin Kobold Sentinels."

"I know," Asuna murmured.

"I'll use a sword skill to knock their pole axes up. The second I do, you both switch in."

Asuna frowned, "Switch?"

Kirito's eyes widened, "Is this the first time you've ever been in a party?"

"Yes."

* * *

Diabel stood in front of the door and faced everyone, "Listen up, guys. I have only one thing to say! " He looked around at them and smiled. "Let's win!"

With that he pushed the door open.

The room was dark to the people creeping in, but as soon as they'd all stepped in light flowed in and the door slammed shut.

Green, pink, blue, yellow, a kaleidoscope of colors made up the room. The Boss Monster jumped down from his throne and landed heavy on the forever changing floor, his landing causing quakes.

He roared and a red diamond appeared over his head as well as his name and health bars.

Lastly, the minions showed themselves, jumping from one foot to the other as they eagerly awaited their chance to slice into the players. Only six of them.

"COMMENCE ATTACK!" Diabel yelled pulling out his sword, all around him players leaped forward with battle cries.

As the attack went on, Diabel yelled orders.

Kirito's party was in charge of somehow keeping the Sentinels off him and the others while they went in to attack the boss.

Kirito attacked and then ordered a switch and like lightning both of the female party members were attacking a single Sentinel.

It didn't stand a chance.

Unfortunately for one of the girls, her cloak fell off, not that it really mattered.

Asuna huffed a little and tried to get her red cloak off the battlefield so she wouldn't step on it while fighting.

Kirito stared for a moment, he hadn't expected either girl to be able to fight well. He'd thought they were beginners!

Yet...

_'They're so fast, I didn't even see them move until the Sentinel was dead. And Asuna...' _

Well Asuna was just gorgeous.

He glanced over at 'Ka'. Her cloak had opened but the hood still shadowed her face.

Though her hair...

Kirito shook it off and switched in fighting off an enemy that got a little to close to Asuna for his liking.

"KA-CHAN MOVE!" Diabel suddenly shouted and both Kirito and Asuna whirled around to check on their party member.

Ka moved to the side in a flash and before long had her long black sword embedded deeply into the Sentinal's flesh, ending its life in an explosion of sparkling red.

Diabel was at her side in an instant. "Ka-chan what was that?" He'd never seen his friend come so close to being skewered.

"Nothing, Diabel-kun. I was distracted." She muttered as a response. "You have to get back to the boss."

It was then that he remembered who he'd been taking on when she'd gotten so close to death and he turned and ran back, landing the blow that got its fourth bar down to red.

All the players retreated while the boss monster threw down its weapons.

"Looks like that information was right." Kibaou said smugly.

"Stand back!" Diabel called, rushing forward. "I'll go!"

Kirito frowned curious as to what was going on. _'We were supposed to surround it with the entire group.' _

It was then that the Boss Monster took out its final weapon.

_**It wasn't a Talwar. It was a No-Dachi.**_

Kirito and Ka's eyes widened at the same time.

"NO!" Kirito yelled. "Get back as fast as you can!"

"DIABEL-KUN GET BACK! IT'S CHANGED!" Ka screamed, rushing forward to protect her friend.

The Boss Monster jumped into the air and landed behind Diabel, it's landing causing quakes once again and putting Diabel on unsteady feet.

Diabel stared death in the face as the No-Dachi came toward him too fast to dodge, but then again he didn't have to.

There was a light wind and a clang of swords before Ka was in front of him, her sword barely holding under the pressure of the Boss Monsters attack.

"Ka-chan..." Diabel whispered, gratitude taking over his features. "Thank you."

"No, thank you Diabel-kun." She murmured as the sword cracked, "If not for you I would not have ever left the Town of Beginners."

Her sword cracked again and a gust of wind made her cloak slide off, revealing her face.

Kirito gasped in shock, his sword clanging to the ground. _'I knew it. I knew I knew her.' _

It all made sense now.

The way she'd held his hand and wouldn't let go. **She was afraid he'd leave her again.**

Her voice was so much more familiar when she'd cheerfully said 'Nope'. **After they'd gotten past her shy nature she'd been enthusiastic and hyper.**

Her hair was bluish black. **It was a color he'd never seen before on anyone. He'd seen greenish tints and reddish tints, but no blue. **

Diabel called her Ka-chan. **KA-gome-CHAN.**

His fist clenched. She'd survived after he'd left her. Was it some cruel twist of fate that now she'd die in front of him?

_'No. I won't let it happen...' _

Grabbing his sword up off the ground, he charged forward and slashed the Boss Monster's side, making it release the pressure on Kagome's sword -which was broken beyond repair-. She dropped the sword and grabbed Diabel's just as he yelled, "SWITCH!"

Kagome let out a war cry, set on her revenge -Thing almost killed her friend!- and charged in dodging his attack and slash and leaped onto his arm getting in a good shot to his chest before calling, "SWITCH!"

With that Kirito went in and slashed his arm, before retreating to dodge a strike.

It was then that they noticed how quiet it was. Turning around slowly Kagome found Diabel, almost directly behind her, holding her discarded sword... with a slash across his chest.

On the floor.

Dying.

Tears entered her eyes and she ran to his side, falling halfway there and sliding to him. Kirito was next to her in an instant. "Diabel, what were you doing!"

She'd known her friend was headstrong, but this was a stupid move. To take a useless sword and head into battle...

Realization clicked into her mind. The special bonus reward.

"You were a beta tester too." Kirito whispered understandingly.

Diabel nodded and clutched at Kagome's hair. "You have to... kill the Boss... for everyone. Please..."

"It's gone Diabel. Everything is going to be fine." Kagome murmured, hoping he was too far gone to notice that the Boss was being held off by some of the other players as she took out a health item."You're going to be-"

She was interrupted when he grabbed the item and shook his head. "P-Put it... a-away Ka-chan." He turned his head slightly, "H-He's the o-one, is-isn't he? The g-guy y-you were wai-waiting for b-ack in t..."

The light left his eyes and he erupted into a flurry of green sparks.

Kagome's eyes widened and she tried to grab the quickly disappearing pieces. "No...No... NO! Diabel..."

Kirito grabbed her arm. "Kagome... he's gone..."

"NO! LET GO! I CAN SAVE HIM! I KNOW I CAN SAVE HIM! LET ME GO KIRITO!"

Tears gathered in Kirito's eyes as his friend struggled and cried, screaming and kicking until finally she gathered into a sobbing mess in his arms.

_'When this game started, the only thing I thought about was surviving. I left Kagome and Klein back in the Town of Beginners. However, Diabel, you were a beta tester. But you never abandoned the other players. You led everyone and you fought brilliantly! You tried to do what I could not.' _

"No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No..."

"Kagome, the boss is still there. You have to help me and Asuna fight it." Kirito murmured gently as his other party member appeared by his side.

"It doesn't matter. Nothing matters." Kagome replied back hollowly. "Nothing..."

Asuna frowned, trying to think of a way to get the heartbroken girl up. "Kagome-san, the thing that killed your friend is right there. Don't you want revenge?"

Kagome looked up at her uncomprehendingly for a moment before her eyes darkened and she wiped away her tears, "Diabel's...killer. A monster." She turned to get a look at the Boss Monster and grabbed the sword she'd dropped in her haste to check on Diabel. "Let's do this."

Charging in Kirito made it just in time to save Egil and he turned back to his party members as the creäture stumbled unsteadily on its feet.

"One more strike! Asuna, Kagome! We do this together!"

The girl's nodded and ran in with this stabbing and chopping until finally Kirito got in a slash that was beyond the point of fatality.

It shattered into a rainbow of colors and everyone erupted into cheers.

Everyone but the party who had defeated it.

**Congratulations! **

The sign had appeared from the flurry of red sparks and wouldn't disappear until everyone left the room.

"We did it!"

Kirito was on one knee, with Kagome in the same position beside him, when a sign appeared in front of him.

**Congratulations**

**()(_)()**

**You get the last attacking bonus!**

**Bonus Item. **

***Coat Of Midnight**

"Good work." Asuna said, making him turn around. She and Egil stood there looking at both him and Kagome a bit soberly.

Egil nodded to him. "That was splendid swordsmanship. Congratulations. This victory belongs to you."

"No... " Kirito shook his head as the room's contents cheered him on.

"Why?!" Kibaou suddenly yelled, getting the attention of everyone. "Why did you let Diabel die?"

"Let him die?" Someone whispered. "It looked to me they were trying to save him."

"Of course! You two knew that technique the boss used! If you'd bothtold us about that up front, your sword wouldn't have been broken and he could have used it to shield himself. He wouldn't have died!"

There was whispering amongst the gathered players and they now looked at Kirito untrustingly.

"They must be beta testers! That's how they knew all the boss's attack patterns!"

"They knew but they didn't tell us!"

"Other beta testers are here too right?! Come out!"

Kirito frowned, _'This is bad. At this rate...' _He gulped.

That's when terrible laughter lit up the entire room, every occupant turned, including a stunned Kirito.

Kagome got up with a flourish. "Beta tester? I wish you wouldn't compare us to those newbies."

"W-What?!"

"Most of the thousand beta testers were beginners." Kirito said, getting onto what she was doing and standing himself. "They didn't even know how to level up. _You guys _are better than they are!"

"But we're not like them." Kagome finished and they began walking toward where they knew they could enter the next level. "I made it higher than anyone else during the beta test and he was right behind me."

"The reason we knew the boss's skills, is because we fought monsters with katana skills on floors far above us."

Kagome smiled darkly, "We know a lot more. Way more than any information broker."

Kibaou took a step back. "W-What? That's way worse than a beta tester. You're cheating! You're cheaters!"

The crowd erupted in yells of "Cheaters!"

"Cheaters and Beta Testers! They're Beaters!"

Kirito grinned. "Beaters. I like it don't you, Kagome-chan?"

Kagome smiled when he went back to her honorific. "That's right... we are beaters. The only two in existence. From now on don't confuse us with the other testers."

Kirito -who had been messing around with his items- selected his new cloak of midnight. With that the two headed up the stairs.

"Wait!" Asuna called running to get to where they were. "You called my name when we were fighting."

"Sorry for using just your first name. Or did I mess up the pronunciation?" Kirito asked.

"Where did you learn it?"

"You can see another HP Gauge under yours right? Isn't something written next to it?"

"Ki...ri..to... Kirito? Is that your name?"

"Yeah."

She paused a moment before blushing with a small laugh. "Oh, it's been there all this time!"

Kirito looked down at her solumnly. "You'll be really strong. So if someone you trust ever invites you to join a guild, don't turn them down. There's a big limit to what you can do as a solo player."

"Then, what about you?"

Kirito moved forward another step before disbanding the party. Kagome moved a little closer and put her hand on his arm before turning back to the other girl. "Bai~! Asuna-chan~!"

With that they both walked into the door that opened for them.

Ready to go to the next level.

* * *

**_i luv niki4444_**

YOU'RE A BEATER!

...Sorry I couldn't help it LOL! :D

Hey guys! After a very VERY long wait, here is chapter two of Tainted Light. Hope you like it!

Now, if I'm write the two year time skip occurs somewhere between the third and fourth episode so I will FINALLY be able to branch out from the SAO episodes without feeling like I'm changing the entire story plot.

Anyway, again Enjoy! REVEIW!

THANKS GUYS !

**_Love Always_**

**_~ Niki _**


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